How to Request Donations for a Funeral

The grief of losing a loved one is all too often compounded by the shock of a large and unexpected expense: the funeral costs. Not everyone has life insurance or savings put by to cover their own burial. Some simply can't afford it, while others think they have plenty of time to plan for it. One method to defray costs of the funeral is to ask for financial help from the deceased's loved ones. Not everyone is going to be able to pitch in; in the case someone has to decline, respond appropriately with a phrase such as, "I completely understand. Thank you so much for thinking of us."

Add a request for monetary donations to the obituary in the newspaper by including a line such as, "The family is respectfully asking for donations toward the funeral costs," after announcing when the viewing and funeral will be. Ask your funeral director to make the request part of his presentation. If his expenses haven't been covered, he'll likely ask for donations to be made directly to his funeral home, with any excess to be passed on to the family. Make use of crowd-funding, a way of using the power of social media to ask for donations. Through niche websites, you can directly ask for donations to cover funeral expenses. Remember to be tactful. You may choose to explain the circumstances, set a reasonable funding goal and thank everyone for their support, whether or not they can contribute financially.